Murray Wood: The day Canada Became a nation
April 9, 1917 was Easter Monday. On that date, 109 years ago, Canadian soldiers made history at Vimy Ridge. Murray Wood ...
A fresh dump of snow is good news for the upcoming wildfire season, according to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA).
Steve Roberts, the SPSA’s vice-president of operations, said the agency is still assessing snow pack runoff this spring, but there is more moisture than the year prior.
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“Overall, wildfire conditions have improved compared to last year in parts of the north and central forested parts of the province,” he said “However, the south remains relatively the same as the onset of 2025.”
Saskatchewan saw one of its most devastating wildfire seasons in recent years in 2025, with more than 50 communities evacuated.
More than 500 wildfires burned in the province last year burning over 3 million hectares of land.
Community Safety Minister Michael Weger said there is still not a final total on damage from the 2025 wildfire season yet.
“With planning, dedicated crews, and public cooperation, we are well positioned to respond effectively this season,” he said.
Weyakwin was one of over 50 communities to be evacuated in 2025, as fires burned close to homes. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW).
Roberts said the severity of the wildfire season will depend on weather trends in the summer, which brings long periods of heat and wind accelerating flames.
“Up until June, our fire season is primarily based on snow pack, and that’s looking actually favourable – more favourable (than) last year after that period,” he said. “It will have a lot to do with ignition sources, including lightning and the current weather conditions for there to the end of August.”
Roberts said work began to prepare for this years wildfire season as soon as the last one ended.
“Heading into the 2026 season, the agency is more prepared than ever,” he said
An eighth helicopter has been contracted to join the current fleet in Saskatchewan for extra support, he said, and heavy equipment has been pre-registered so it is ready to respond.
Roberts said two water-scooping aircrafts will be unavailable until mid-wildfire season due to maintenance and repairs.
“These are the last two aircrafts that are due to come online late in the season,” he said, “so the impact to this, to the response will be low.”
Roberts said aircraft has been maintained and the first group is ready to fly out when fires ignite.
When calling upon volunteer fire departments, Roberts said it has created a formalized standing agreement to make the dispatch process easier.
There have been additional improvements to the SPSA’s evacuation processes and evacuation app to make it easier to use. Roberts said staff also arrived this week to start spring training to man the province’s 42 wildfire detection towers.
This winter, Roberts said crews thinned forests and did maintenance on fireguards to help reduce fire fuel.
